For small businesses, uncertainty is often one of the biggest hurdles to overcome. And it doesn’t get much more uncertain than Brexit. With tariffs, taxes and immigration all yet to be decided, companies are faced with little surety around their staff, supply chain and finances.

But while the UK finds itself in a unique situation, there have been uncertain times before, and there are practical steps businesses can take to protect themselves, according to experts speaking at the solving the solvable seminar for small businesses.

Panellist Toni Cowan-Brown, vice president of European business development at Nationbuilder, told the audience that “unfamiliar”, “unpredictable” and “uncertain” are all words that can be applied to Brexit. They’re all things that SMEs are equipped to deal with, yet are also keen to avoid, she said. Attracting and retaining talent is vital, she added, and in a post-EU-referendum world that’s as much about the company you are as what you sell. “The one thing you can do to continue to attract talent is showcase your ethos.”

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It also means looking at people’s packages, she said, which doesn’t just mean salaries. “I think the biggest added value at this point is rethinking packages and convincing people, but it’s a hard thing to do when you don’t know what’s happening.”

Retaining talent is also top of the list for fellow panellist Antonia Burrell, founder of Antonia Burrell Holistic Skincare. Like Cowan-Brown, she said small businesses must think beyond salaries and to what’s important to their key players. Faced with the prospect of losing several senior members of her team, Burrell told the audience how she had to think outside the box to keep them on board. “We have ended up still working with those people, but through a video screen,” she said.

Thanks to the help of technology, from video conferencing to online workflow systems, three key members of Burrell’s staff have been able to return to Italy, Spain and Miami, giving both her and them what they want. “Actually they feel more loved, for want of a better word,” she said. “Because we’re giving them what they want and need, I have managed to maintain some of my top-level staff who actually make a difference to my bottom line.”

The full effects of Brexit on small businesses may be largely unknown, but that doesn’t mean you can’t start preparing. Suren Thiru, head of economics and business finance at the British Chamber of Commerce, told the seminar he understood why two thirds of businesses aren’t preparing for Brexit when it’s hard to plan for five or six different potential outcomes.

Panel (L-R): Toni Cowan-Brown, vice president of European business development, Nationbuilder; Antonia Burrell, founder, Antonia Burrell Holistic Skincare; Phillip Inman, economics editor, the Observer (chair); Suren Thiru, head of economics and business finance, British Chamber of Commerce. Photograph: Sam Friedrich for the Guardian

But there are things they can do, he said. These could include: a “Brexit audit”, giving insight into how much of the workforce is from the EU; looking at contracts with EU companies and how they would pan out in a post-Brexit economy; analysing your supply chain and whether that will change once the UK leaves the EU and looking at the possible effects on VAT. “Speak to the bank, make sure plans are in place,” he said.

Forward-planning and financial knowledge are vital, said Burrell, along with a “nimble mindset”. “You have got to have the discipline to plan ahead and plan ahead about a year. You have to know your numbers. If you don’t know your numbers, you don’t understand your business, because you can’t project accurately. It’s about having that discipline every single week – look at your numbers, look at your sales … understand how that is affecting your bottom line.”

For Burrell, ensuring you weather the storm that is Brexit is all about preparing for the future. And that would apply even without the looming spectre of leaving the European Union. “Even if Brexit wasn’t a threat, we should be doing these things anyway if we’re going to succeed,” she insisted. She summed it up with the same warning given by Benjamin Franklin: “Fail to prepare, you prepare to fail.”

The experts spoke at the solving the solvable seminar, held at Guardian offices, on Tuesday 23rd January 2018.

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